NASA Administrator Bill Nelson released this statement Tuesday following Vice President Kamala Harris’ announcement the U.S. will not conduct destructive anti-satellite missile testing (ASAT):

“Fifteen years ago, China’s military littered outer space with thousands of pieces of debris from a reckless ASAT missile test. Just a few months ago, another destructive ASAT test by the Russian military threatened U.S. and European astronauts, Russian cosmonauts, and Chinese taikonauts in space, as well as scientific and commercial on-orbit assets.

“There is no doubt that human spaceflight and the future of the space environment are incompatible with destructive direct-ascent ASAT missile tests. Vice President Harris and the Biden Administration’s leadership to address these threats and reduce risk is an important step forward to foster a safe, sustainable space environment – now and into the future. I encourage the world to join us in making this important commitment.”